Chapter 15: Wrath of the Forum Games
It's 8 in the morning when everyone heads to the auditorium. The users clump together to talk with each other.
SirLegendary and DarkFire are walking next to each other making pleasant conversation.
Legend looks into the gymnasium through the huge hole in the back wall as they pass by. "What do you think happened there?"
"I heard some chick threw a dodgeball and obliterated the whole boys' team," DarkFire scoffs. "The guys were probably just weak."
"I'm sure they tried their hardest," grins Legend.
"Whatever the effort, they just had their man cards revoked."
Dark and Legend both enter in the auditorium and are accosted by Armorplayer shouting from the front row. "Hey guys! Sit over here!"
After a second's hesitation, Legend sits down next to Armor with DarkFire on his right. "So do you know what this is about?" whispers Legend to Armor. DarkFire glances over at them.
Armor shrugs. "Guess we'll find out when those open." He nods toward the closed stage curtains.
After a few more minutes of users fighting over places to sit, the curtains finally fly open, revealing Gantic on a podium with some of the teachers clustered around him.
"Hello students." Gantic coughs benevolently into a microphone on the podium. "I'm sure all of you are wondering why I called you all here today." He spreads his arms out. "Today is Forum Games Day!"
The auditorium fills with a burst of excited mutters.
"What's Forum Games Day?" whispers Legend.
"I'm sure if you wait, he'll tell us," replies DarkFire.
"Settle down, folks." Gantic waits for the noise to die down before continuing. "Forum Games Day is a day where teams of users will compete to count to 100. As a reward the members of that team will have access to their own personal lounge and other special privileges throughout the school year."
A moment of silence passes. Everyone starts counting.
"Not like that," sighs Gantic in exasperation. "You have to follow those." He points to a 1 on an emergency exit door. "As for your teams, you have been assigned numbers. If someone has the same number as you, you're on their team. Pretty simple. Now get to counting." Gantic pulls on a lever, causing papers hanging on wires to fall from the ceiling in front of each user.
Armor takes his. "I'm a 5."
Legend chuckles. "Really? So am I."
DarkFire shows his number, which is also a 5. "Looks like I'm with you nerds."
"I wonder if anyone else is a 5," wonders Armor.
"Why don't we ask him?" DarkFire points at Jack, who's holding a sign with a 5 on it.
When the trio reach Jack they notice Eliakith and GogoTank are already there.
"So are you guys also 5s?" asks Gogo.
"That's why we're here," says DarkFire rudely.
"Now we can all protest in peace." Jack says excitedly before getting hit in the head by DarkFire with his own sign.
"So I'm guessing we follow the numbers," Legend says as he starts wandering off.
"Wait!" shouts Gogo.
Everyone's attention turns to Gogo.
"What's the matter?" asks a curious Armorplayer.
"We need a team name!" Gogo throws his flippers up. Nobody else seems to share his enthusiasm.
"Like what?" grunts Eliakith.
"Adebisi Shank!" roars Gogo.
Everyone stares at him, confusion written over their features.
"What kind of name is that?" DarkFire raises an eyebrow incredulously.
"It's a band!" Gogo winks.
"Pls no Gooby pls," mutters DarkFire
"We can come up with a name later," says Eliakith loudly, recapturing their attention. "Let's just start counting already."
Everyone mumbles before finally saying, "Fine."
They group up to follow the numbers. The third one takes them outside the auditorium.
---
Number 15 is in Freakenstein's classroom. Inside, Frank is sitting at his desk. The unmistakable shape of a giant hammer sits on the desktop.
"Finally!" shouts Frank. "You're the first users to have gotten here, and it's been half an hour. What is everyone doing out there?"
"I think everyone is just sitting back in the auditorium talking," says Gogo.
"Don't they realize there's a prize on the line?" Frank sighs. "Anyways, here's the rules. This game is called You're Banned-"
"Woah woah woah!" Eliakith shouts as he interrupts Frank. "We're playing a game inside a game?"
Armor scratches his armpit. "That's pretty mind-boggling."
"Yeah, yeah." Frank waves his hammer around playfully (or maybe threateningly). "So as I was saying, here's the rules." He holds a paper with a 16 and tapes it to his chest. "You need to take this 16 from me to go on ahead. If I smash you with my hammer, you start back at 1."
"Excuse me, sir?" Jack raises his sign hand. "Smashing us with hammers seems a bit violent."
"Yeah, well, I'm being paid for harming you kids so it's not like I have a choice." Frank forces another sigh. "Alright, let's get this started."
Frank raises his hammer, gazes at the users in an appraising manner, and brings it down on Legend with crushing force.
"Whoa, Frank!" shouts a startled Legend, rolling to the side and barely dodging. "You seem to be a bit too much into this!"
"This is the fun part of my day, dude!" Frank shouts, bringing down another hammer smash upon Eliakith, who jumps out of the way. The hammer grazes his toes. Eliakith screams like a little girl and quivers behind Legend.
"How are we supposed to get that 16 from him?" Armor says and starts laughing maniacally, as he has lost his mind or maybe experienced a small nervous breakdown from thinking so hard about this.
DarkFire looks at a scared Gogo, who is cowering in the front of the group, and bravely decides to shove him towards Frank. The startled penguin stumbles toward Frank.
"Wow. You should probably get new friends," snorts Frank. He raises his hammer over his head. Before he could bring it down on his hapless victim, the hapless victim, in a state of total panic, decided to hug Frank.
Frank is caught off guard - no, paralyzed - by this physical affection, as the only person who'd ever hugged him in his life was his mother. He'd come to assume that hugs were a social construct only available to be handed down from mother to child. Those were the rules that were set in stone, set in steel, and the fact that those rules had only been self-imposed this entire time was earth-shattering. His kokoro went doki doki."What the? Get off me, kid!" Frank shoves Gogo off of him - however, that was his mistake. Let's cut to the slow-motion camera now, kids.
Gogo reels backwards, mouth an O of surprise. His eyes glitter with tears as, arms pinwheeling, gravity takes hold of him and he starts accelerating towards the ground. In a stroke of luck, one of those pinwheeling arms snags the number 16 off Frank's wiggly pectorals. They're wiggling because his kokoro is going doki doki. Okay, back to the fast cam now, folks.
Everyone, including Frank, stares in amazement at the number in Gogo's hand.
"Well I uh, I guess you guys can go on ahead then." Frank sits down and puts his head on the desk, thinking about what had just happened and trying to re-fit the logic of his world back together. He was also regretting not hugging random hot chicks that he might've met before.
Legend slaps Dark on the back. "How did you know Gogo would hug Frank?" asks Legend.
Dark shrugs. "I didn't."
Everyone stares at Dark as he walks on ahead.
---
All of the number 5 users walk into Miss Kegaumongo's Catalan classroom, looking for the number 27. Inside at the desk is Kega herself.
She smiles as the users enter. "So, you guys must be looking for 27."
"Do we have to fight you too?" sighs Eliakith.
"Sí, but you won't be fighting me directly." Kega says as she stands on top of her desk. "We'll be playing a ga-"
"Uggggh!" groans Dark at the top of his lungs.
"Oh c'mon, don't be like that," sighs Kega. "It'll be very divertit."
"Y-yeah. I'm sure it'll be very uh, divertit!" stutters Legend.
"That's the spirit!" she shouts. "The game we'll be playing is called This or That. Now, let's begin. Would you rather pick multiple jars of combustible mayo or a bear covered in mayo?"
"Bear!" shouts Jack without hesitation. "The bear must be free of its blanket of mayo! Poor bear!"
"Jack!" everyone else screams.
"Ok, cool." Kega flips a switch and the chalkboard behind her slides away and reveals a live bear slathered head to toe in mayo.
"Why is the bear covered in mayo?" asks Eliakith slowly.
"Because it's artistic!" Kega shouts. "This is as close as I can get to being an art teacher!" She snaps her fingers in front of the bear. "Attack the children and you can have some salmon, Fish."
"With a lemon on the side I hope?" asks a hopeful Fish.
Kega smiles. "Depends on how well of a job you do."
Fish sighs as he wipes some of the mayo from his nose.
"You know, it doesn't really seem fair that 6 highschool students have to fight a bear..." gulps a nervous Legend.
"Oh, no worries. I will be enrolling into the school next week!" says Fish helpfully.
"Wonderful." Dark rolls his eyes.
"Enough talk!" screams Kega. "I demand blood!"
Fish stands on all fours and charges toward the students at breathtaking speed. They all scramble out of theway as Fish's sharp claws swing down like scythes.
Kega laughs like a maniac. "Yes! YES! Paint the room with their blood!"
"What in the world happened to her shining personality?" shouts Legend as he evades every swing from Fish's claws.
"I know right?" gasps Eliakith. "She was so hot a minute ago..."
"I'm sorry, what was that?" Legend shouts. "I couldn't hear that from the blood pounding in my ears."
Eliakith blushes. "Nothing important. Of course."
DarkFire once again approaches Gogotank from behind and shoves him toward the bear.
"Really?!" shouts Jack, horrified. "Must you sacrifice the penguin a second time?!"
Before Fish's claws can rake Gogo's face in half, Gogo decides to bravely hug Fish, hoping his surprise tactic will work twice.
Fish shoves Gogo. "Is that what you call a bear hug?" He shakes his head in disappointment before lifting up Gogo and enveloping him in mayonnaise arms, almost crushing him. "THIS! Is a real bear hug!"
Everyone then rushes toward Kega, excited to get the 27 since the bear was distracted. However, Armorplayer's excitement was clearly the most dominant, as he rushed forward and knocked Kega unconscious with a chair before she could even speak.
Everyone, including Fish and a gurgling Gogo, stare at the unconscious teacher on the floor.
"Armor!" shouts Eliakith, near the verge of sissy tears. "What the heck was that for!"
"But she was dangerous," says Armor monotonously. He thinks about gnawing on the chair.
"Now how will I get my salmon?" shouts Fish, outraged. "Just wait until I inform Mr. Gan-" Fish is cut off when Armorplayer smacks him down with his friendly chair. The chair breaks and the bear crumples into a heap on the floor. As a group, they drag Kega and Fish into the classroom closet. Legend takes the 27 from Kega's desk as he flees with everyone else.
---
Everyone goes into MrDayCee's closet, looking for number 47. However, there's nobody there.
"There's nobody here," says Eliakith, repeating the narrator.
"Hey guys, look!!" Jack picks up a 47 off DayCee's desk. "Looks like we can just leave!"
"Thank god!" shouts Eliakith. "I'm tired of all these games."
They leave with the 47, looking on ahead for the next number.
---
Unleashed's class holds the next number, 68. When the users head inside, their mouths are wide open as they see a huge hill in the middle of the room.
"Welcome challengers!" bellows Unleashed from the top of the hill. "Welcome to your misery!"
"What's the big hill for?" yawns DarkFire.
"It's the game," smiles Unleashed with a hint of gleeful malice. "You have to claim this hill by running all the way up here!"
"Seems easy enough." Eliakith begins running up the hill.
"However," continues Unleashed. "There are a few tra-"
Unleashed is interrupted by a bloodcurdling shriek from Eliakith as a wooden spike bursts from the ground and through the center of his foot. Legend and Jack slowly head for Eliakith and pull him away.
"Yeah, no, screw that." Dark approaches Unleashed's desk, which happens to still be at ground level, and takes a 68 from a huge stack.
"Wait what?!" Unleashed stares at the 68 in disbelief. "Did I seriously forget to bring those up here?!"
"You can come down and get them," yells Gogotank defiantly.
"Yeah, well, I sort of forgot where the spike traps are," muttered Unleashed. "So can I get you guys to bring them up?" However they'd already scrambled out of there before he'd finished talking.
---
Everyone walks toward principal Gantic's office as they prepare for the final battle for the 100.
"Alright, is everyone ready for this?" asks SirLegendary.
"Are you sure we can't leave him behind?" asks Dark, pointing to a still crippled Eliakith being dragged by Armor.
"Would you dare leave one of your own kind behind?!" screeches Jack with the power of fanaticism.
"Yes," says Dark, looking away.
"Has anyone else noticed that Jack has barely talked this whole time?" blurts out GogoTank.
"Guys, guys!" shouts Armorplayer, who seems to have gotten over the loss of his beloved chair. "Can we please focus on the task at hand?"
"Thank you, Armor." Legend winks approvingly. "Now let's get this over with already."
Everyone heads into the office, which is now ten times bigger than its usual size, and partially formed from none-euclidean geometry. Most of the room seems to be blocked by a huge wall with an opening on the left. At the top is a flat-screen TV that would not look out of place in a football stadium.
Gantic hovers down on a floating pedestal, a lament configuration resting in his hand. "Welcome students, to the Ganticombs!" The TV screen behind Gantic turns on, revealing a giant maze.
"You must all traverse this giant maze, avoiding traps along the way," smiles Gantic benevolently. "Including; dames, people with the power to legally change your name, vicious poddlecrames, and every game that you had to go through to get here!"
"So basically it's a miniature Count to 100, but without the counting?" asks Eliakith apprehensively from the somewhat dusty floor
"When you put it that way, I guess it is!" Gantic spreads his arms even more benevolently. "So are you all ready for this treacherous journey?"
The group starts walking out the door before Gantic finishes.
"Hey!" shouts Gantic. The benevolence is gone. "Where are you guys going?"
"Yeah, we're kind of done with counting... forever," says Armorplayer with sass. Eliakith tries to say something but it just comes out as a frightened whimper.
"Oh," says Gantic. The benevolence is gone. "I guess I made it too challenging for them, then." He turns to go back into his office.
Group 5 jumps when the sound of air horns rings through the air and balloons and confetti rain down throughout the whole school. DarkFire comes out, the 100 in hand.
"How did you get through?" frowns Gantic. "And in such little time?"
"Because I'm the counting master." DarkFire says coolly, and doesn't offer an explanation further than that.
"Seems like you're the only winner then.." says Gantic. The benevolence has returned. "At least we won't have to waste money on the other five." Gantic puts a paw around Dark's shoulder as they walk out of the office. "How does a little something called AFG sound to you?"
---
MrDayCee wakes up in a dark, damp basement, strapped to a chair. A lamp on a table is shining brightly into his eyes like in all the mafia movies. He pushes against his bonds, but they don't give.
"Hello, MrDayCee," says a voice behind the light. "We've been waiting for you to wake up. Would you like a cookie? My mother baked them herself. Lah." A hand pushes a rolling cart with a plate of cookies is briefly illuminated. The cart comes to a halt next to DayCee, who tries to peer past the light and fails.
"Thanks, but after trying one of R2's cookies, I'm not very interested." DayCee thumps the palm of his hand on the armrest. "So, I'm guessing you want something from me? You know I'm a janitor, right? My salary is so low it's not even funny." He stretches. "Also, can you let me go? This chair is very uncomfortable."
"We'll let you go, DayCee," says the voice. "But only if you give us some information on the old Gondor Highschool. Lah."
"The old Gondor Highschool?" scoffs DayCee. "You know that's just a rumor, right?"
"A rumor?" gasps the squeaky voice. "I don't think so. My partner dug this up from behind the football bleachers. Lah." An old stone tablet is slid across the table into the light for DayCee to see. On the tablet are the words, 'Lord of the Rings' and the picture of an extremely pale goblin thing.
DayCee stares at the tablet, struggling to betray no emotion.
The owner of the voice displays a bright, shiny smile that's somehow visible from behind the lamp. They probably use Crest 3D Whitening Radiant toothpaste. "Now tell me everything you know."
Editors: @StormWalker, @09philj
Characters: @SirLegendary, @DarkFire45, @armorplayer, @Gogotank, @Jackinbigletters, @Eliakith, @Gantic, @Freakenstein, @kegaumongo, @FishPreferred, @UnleashedUponMankind, @MrDayCee, @???
